Fallacy Discussion April 20th

William Coskran

Example fallacy exchange:

Student council: Students should have a greater voice in the decision-making at this school!

Principal: Well, a school is not really a Democratic organization, and we are not going to try to change
the governmental structure. There are many other important issues on which we should focus.

Do you think the principal has committed the Is-Ought fallacy? Explain your answer.

I believe the principal has committed the Is-Ought Fallacy. My reasoning for this is that he doesn't give
solid reasoning for not changing the governmental structure other than a sort of that's the way it is
explanation. A better argument for him to make would be to give other reasons for the school's inability
to change. If he had said we don't have the funding to support a full democratic process or
democratic processes in school's are notoriously ineffective he would have had a more solid
argument.

In conclusion, I think the principal committed the Is-Ought Fallacy because he didn't explain his
reasoning for refusing to change.